COUNCILLORS are set to appeal for the changing of a Helensburgh bus timetable which has recently been the subject of a petition by school pupils.
The 206 bus service, linking the town with Haldane in the Vale of Leven, has been under scrutiny due to the timings of early morning services passing Hermitage Academy.
Cardross-based pupils have reportedly had to decide between getting to the school before it opens its doors in the morning, or risk arriving late.
A petition asking for a bus service to be set up from Cardross to the school had received nearly 600 signatures as of the morning of Wednesday, December 3, when papers for a council committee meeting went live.
Councillor Fiona Howard (Labour, Helensburgh Central) is now set to move a motion asking for Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT) and First Bus to consider changes to the timetable.
The motion, seconded by Councillor Graham Hardie (Liberal Democrat, Helensburgh Central), also asks for councillors to seek the support of senior colleagues in the communication.
It will be put before Argyll and Bute Council’s Helensburgh and Lomond area committee at its meeting on Tuesday, December 9.
The motion, published with the full agenda for the meeting, read: “A new bus timetable, recently introduced on the Dumbarton to Helensburgh route, leaves some Hermitage Academy pupils and parents, who live in Cardross, with a choice of leaving very early, meaning they have to hang around waiting for the school doors to open, or catching the next, later bus which is often delayed and means pupils miss registration or even the start of period one.
“Helensburgh and Lomond area committee, therefore, agrees that the chair (Councillor Howard) write to SPT and First Bus asking that the service bus timetable between Dumbarton and Helensburgh be adjusted in the morning to allow pupils travelling from Cardross by bus to get to Hermitage Academy in time for registration rather than arriving just in time for the first class.
“And to also seek the support of council SPT representative Councillor Gordon Blair (SNP, Cowal) and policy lead for roads, transport and amenity services Councillor John Armour (SNP, South Kintyre) in seeking this alteration to the timetable.”
A statement published with the petition read: “Many pupils who live in Cardross, myself included, experience the daily challenge of getting to school on time.
“This is due to there being no dedicated school bus service from Cardross to Hermitage Academy. This issue affects not only the punctuality of students but also their safety and well-being.”
